Ivan Horrocks

Democratic Governance and New Technology: Technologically Mediated Innovations in Political Practice in Western Europe

From the Publisher: Drawing on case studies from Denmark, The Netherlands and the UK, this book discusses new in formation and communication technologies. It explores their role in the restructuring of Western democratic political systems.

Applying the Morphogenetic Approach

Abstract With its emphasis on analytical dualism and its detailed account of the concepts and methods necessary for its application, Margaret Archers morphogenetic approach seems to provide significant potential for empirical research. Over a decade after its publication, however, the potential of the approach remains largely unrealised. This paper seeks to begin to address this situation by reporting on and assessing the application of the morphogenetic approach to a longitudinal case study of information systems (IS) development and organisational change in British local government. This assessment confirms Archers claims for the approachs value as an instrument for the production of non-conflationary practical social theory. In addition, certain features of the methodology moved the analysis of IS and organisational change beyond that of more mainstream approaches used for this type of research. However, a range of issues are identified which demonstrate that the complexity and resulting resource intensity of the approach may well work against its more widespread adoption for empirical research.

Experts and e-government: Power, influence and the capture of a policy domain in the UK

This paper argues that as e-government has increasingly come to dominate the policy agenda for the delivery of public services it has simultaneously acted as a fundamental mechanism for increasing the power and influence of ‘experts’: i.e. the IT consultancy industry and its supporters within government and public services. The result is the emergence of a power loop in which consultants occupy influential positions in government and public policy circles and then act as powerful agents in promoting the development of both e-government ‘solutions’ and the technology and expertise these require to ‘deliver’ the promised outcomes. This creates further opportunities for shaping and controlling e-government policy and for more ‘experts’ to enter the e-government environment, thus increasing the power and influence of the ‘consultocracy’. The loop is thus self-perpetuating and, more importantly, enduring, due to the ideological and cultural environment that surrounds and underpins it. The paper concludes by arguing that while it was, and remains, the case that there are legitimate reasons why the consultancy industry has a role in government and public services, the extent of the power and influence of the industry and its supporters in the e-government policy domain, and over the technological capability on which e-government depends, poses significant questions as to whose interests the industry best serves. Furthermore, whether this is detrimental to the development of best value/cost effective systems to deliver public services, and whether the basis and extent of these relations undermines the credibility and legitimacy of the policy process, and thus of democratic governance generally, remains an open question.

Exchanging information with the public: From one-stop shops to community information systems

There is growing interest in new ways in which states interact with citizens, and public services respond to their customers. This interest stems from many sources and has arisen in many different contexts. What these agendas have in common, however, is that they are all predicated on new flows of information between government and citizens that may be facilitated by the innovative application of information and communication technologies (ICTs). This article reports on current research into these innovative developments in English local government, from which it is possible to develop a more systematic, empirically-based understanding of the impact of new ICTs on local political and economic development.

Telematics and community governance: issues for policy and practice

The changing processes and practices of governing have led to the emergence of an increasingly complex environment in which a plethora of organizations and agencies can be involved in the governance of local communities. The successful forging of these systems of community governance depends on the capacity of the actors within the system to develop and manage complex and flexible networks of relationships. Telematics ‐ the integrated use of information and communication technologies ‐ are increasingly recognized as fundamental to the development and maintenance of these systems and networks. Approaching the subject from a local authority perspective, explores how the formation, maintenance and management of the organizational and political networks involved in community governance can be facilitated by telematics. Discusses some of the most important policy issues which emerge.

Into the void: A realist evaluation of the eGovernment for You (EGOV4U) project

‘e-government for You’ (EGOV4U) was a European Commission (EC) funded project developed to pilot models of multi-channel, public and community e-services designed to tackle social exclusion and disadvantage through a range of initiatives delivered by five project partners from a variety of European countries. The project evaluation employed a theory-driven approach and the use of mixed methods for data capture and analysis. In this article we combine this with a form of mechanistic explanation that has been specifically developed for realist evaluation: namely the context + mechanism = outcome (CMO) approach. Our contention is that by so doing we further enhance the analytical focus and granularity of the evaluation process and thus the material we present here. This article aims to make use of previously unused material from the EGOV4U evaluation, and provide a realist insight into what works, for whom, in what circumstances and why.

Emergent versus Planned Assessment and Tuition Strategies for Online Postgraduate Teaching of Technology and Innovation Management at the Open University, UK

This chapter examines the development of the assessment and tuition strategy (ATS) for the online postgraduate teaching of technology and innovation management (TIM) at the Open University, UK. Both curriculum content and the ATS have changed significantly in the 25 years since the introduction of this taught programme. Drivers of change have been many and various including factors both internal and external to the institution. Some ATS changes have been prescribed or specifically designed, for example, to address new institutional policy, but others have evolved more gradually, through learning from experience and exploration. The chapter outlines the curriculum, identifies the significant changes made to the ATS together with their rationale, and evaluates the effectiveness of both the current ATS, as a whole, and the approach to its development. Evaluation draws on a variety of internal review activities as well as the benchmarks of good practice in the literature. The chapter concludes that the ATS has considerable strengths and that the combination of prescriptive and emergent approaches to development of the ATS, enabled by online learning tools, serves the programme well.